Why Britcoms are best

'They have more heart,' says David Cross

American comic David Cross has praised British sitcoms for having more emotional ‘heart’ than their US counterparts.

While many British comedy fans might consider that the States produces the best comedies, Arrested Development star Cross says the UK has plenty to be proud of.

He said he is a huge fan of series such as The Office and Peep Show, but he also listed less obviously popular show such as Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, Saxondale and Gavin & Stacey among his favourites and added: ‘I was a huge fan of – still am – of Nathan Barley, which was tragically underwatched. Nobody in the States knows about it. Great. Perfect, perfect show

‘And I’ve just gotten into Shameless... Man I love that show. I know they’re doing a version in the States and I'm excited to see how they're going to fuck it up.’

In the interview with the Digital Spy website, Cross added: ‘There’s a lot of good stuff [in the UK]. Most of the shows. Not all of them, but most of them have a heart at the centre that you just don’t get in the bulk of American sitcoms or comedy shows.

‘It’s the biggest thing that’s lacking. The shows here have a heart at the centre of them, as silly as crazy as they can be.’

Published: 17 Jun 2010

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